Trendlines gets commitments for Agrifood fund from Temasek and other investors
Nisha Ramchandani
Singapore
CATALIST-LISTED startup incubator The Trendlines Group has received conditional commitments of up to US$22 million for its new Singapore-based venture fund from investors, including Temasek.
Aside from Temasek, investors include Librae Holdings - an entity related to UK business tycoon Vincent Tchenguiz - and an additional South-east Asian investor. Trendlines, via its wholly owned subsidiary, Trendlines Agrifood Innovation Centre, will act as manager for the fund, Trendlines Agrifood.
The conditional commitment of up to US$22 million includes the commitment previously reported by the company on 19 July.
It announced then that a global investment company headquartered in Singapore had made a capital commitment of US$5 million to the company's venture capital fund, Trendlines Agrifood.
Subject to certain terms under the subscription agreement, the anchor investor would commit an additional commitment of up to US$5 million to the Fund.(see amendment note)
The fund, which will set up its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Singapore, will invest in new, innovation-based agrifood tech companies in Singapore as well as foreign agrifood firms.
Trendlines chairman and chief executive officer Steve Rhodes said: "We are pleased to be able to start the fund's investment activities in Singapore and around the world. The growing awareness of the impact of the agrifood industry on climate change is going to be a major driver for innovation in the coming years and the need for technological solutions is a critical component and represents a big opportunity for the fund."
Trendlines shares last traded at 7.8 Singapore cents.
Amendment note: In an earlier version of the story, we said that the amount of up to US$22 million includes the commitment previously reported in July, when it announced a S$10.88 million injection from Librae. The story has been updated to reflect that at the time, a Singapore-headquartered global investment company had made a capital commitment of US$5 million to the fund, as well as an additional commitment of up to US$5 million, subject to certain terms.
